Romance for Clarinet, String Orchestra, Piano and/or Harp

(2005) – 9:10                                                                                      

Other Versions: also named Cinema for Orchestra (original), Duetto Amoroso for Flute, English Horn and Orchestra  

Other Version: Clarinet and Piano by Sergei Kofman, assisted by the composer

In Memoriam J.S. Bach, for Viola, String Orchestra and Harpsichord

2008) – 11:50 

  1.   Sarabande – 6:00
  2.   Capriccio – 5:50

(Harpsichord part is optional)

(Formerly named Concerto for Viola)

Other Versions:

  1. A) Partita (In Memory of J.S. Bach), Violin and Chamber Orchestra, Violin and Piano (2000)
  2. B) Sarabande and Capriccio movements: In Memoriam J.S. Bach, for Viola, String Orchestra and Harpsichord; In Memoriam J.S. Bach, for Violin and Chamber Ensemble (Nonet); Viola and Piano
  3. C) Sarabande movement: Viola and Chamber Orchestra; Flute, Violin and Piano (or Organ); Violin and Organ; and Viola and Piano
  4. D) Capriccio movement: String Quartet, String Quintet (quartet and bass), and Septet

Return to Canada

This is a short family and personal history. Please see the other biographies for detailed information on the different facets of my career.

My ancestry can be traced back to Jean Royer (1634 -1675/76).  Son of Jean Royer and Marie Pais, Jean Royer was baptized in France on March 29, 1634 in the church Notre-Dame de Vair of Saint-Cosme-de-Vair located in the diocese of Le Mans. He migrated to New France (Canada) and would be mentioned for the first time on August 10, 1659 when he obtained a concession from Charles de Lauzon in the seigneury of Liret (Sainte-Famille). Jean Royer and Madeleine Dubois gave birth to an illegitimate daughter, Marie-Madeleine Royer, who was baptized on February 20, 1662. Having signed a marriage contract in October 9, 1663 in Quebec City, he married another woman, Marie Targer, born in France on February 22, 1642. She was one of the King’s Daughters (French: filles du roi; filles du roy), a term used to refer to the approximately 800 young French women who immigrated to New France between 1663 and 1673 as part of a program sponsored by King Louis XIV designed to boost New France’s population both by encouraging male colonizers to settle there, and by promoting marriage, family formation and the birth of children. Jean Royer died at Ste-Famille between 1675 and 1676. He had 86 descendants by 1729. 

My great grandfather, Napoleon Royer (1878-1950), moved to the USA in 1896 and settled in Lewiston, Maine. My father, Richard Royer, was born in Lewiston, Maine, and moved to Los Angeles after serving in the US Air Force. I was born in Hollywood in 1959. My mother, Virginia DiTullio Royer, was a pianist and several members of her family were professional musicians. I was surrounded by music growing up and this inspired me to become a musician.

I began my career as a professional freelance cellist, working in Los Angeles from 1980 to 1985. I met my wife Kaye, a clarinetist from Canada, in a music festival in Siena, Italy in 1982. We married and I immigrated to Canada, both in 1985. For the next 5 years, we split our time between Burlington, Ontario and Los Angeles, before settling full time in Toronto in 1990. A Royer has come full circle back to Canada.

For more information on Jean Royer and his descendants, go to https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Royer-46

For more information on the King’s Daughters, go to

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King%27s_Daughters

My mother’s family were of Italian origin, with several of them being professional musicians. I was born in 1959 in Los Angeles and began my musical studies by studying piano with my mother, Virginia DiTullio Royer. At age 10, I switched to the cello, studying with my grandfather, Joseph DiTullio. Growing up, I listened to lots of great music from family members and their friends, colleagues, and students, and heard lots of interesting stories about their experiences in the music world. Above all, they loved and were passionate about music, and they inspired me. At 16, I decided to become a professional cellist. I had a built-in accompanist with my mother and an enthusiastic listener with my father.

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in music, I started working as a freelance musician. From 1980 to 1990, I was fortunate to have had the opportunity to enjoy a variety of musical experiences working in Los Angeles and Toronto, but also touring in the United Stated and Japan.

I met my wife Kaye, a clarinetist, in a music festival in Siena, Italy in 1982. We married in 1985 and have been sharing our love for music and each other ever since. We have enjoyed playing chamber music and in orchestras together. She has been an inspiration and I have written several clarinet solos for her. I would not have become a composer without her support and encouragement.

In the fall of 1990, we settled full time in Toronto, and I shifted my musical focus to teaching and composition. After I started working as a composer, I started getting asked to conduct my music with orchestras. This led to me being invited to become the conductor of the Scarborough Philharmonic in 2008, a post I still hold. As well, I started being asked to become involved in recording projects as a composer and producer.

I am very thankful for being able to make my life in music, and I have tired to share my love and passion for music in my compositions, in my performances and recordings, with my students, and with my friends, family and colleagues.

 

Producer Biography

Producer Biography

Ronald Royer is a multi-talented musician who is active as a producer, composer, conductor, and cellist. While growing up and working in Hollywood, he developed a passion for all aspects of music recording. He had the opportunity to work at all the major recording studios, including Capitol, CBS, Disney, The Evergreen Stage, Fox, MGM, Ocean Way Recording, Paramount, Universal and Warner Bros. There he worked with top recording engineers and producers, joined the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (presently called the Recording Academy), and has been a voting member of the Grammy Awards for over 30 years.

For 13 of the CD recordings featuring Mr. Royer’s music, he has been involved in the administrative side of the project, with 7 as a producer. In 1999, Mr. Royer was asked to produce his first commercial recording, Romancing Chopin, performed by the Toronto Sinfonietta and released in 2000. Since then, he has produced five recordings for the Cambria Master Recordings label (Lomita, California) and was the music supervisor for a Canadian feature film Gooby with a full orchestral soundtrack.

His recordings have consistently received enthusiastic reviews, including ones for Canadian Panorama:

“In short, this recording and the music so beautifully performed on it are, and will continue to be for many years, a precious gift to us all in the year of our nation’s 150th birthday.”

WholeNote Magazine, Allan Pulker

“If you like wind ensemble music, this disc is for you. If you want to further explore Canadian music, this disc is for you. Heck, if you just want a great listening experience, Canadian Panorama is a disc for you.”

WTJU 91.1 FM, University of Virginia

“I can’t say enough about this excellent recording.”

 bandworld.org – MagOnline

This is an album of firsts: first recordings of these Canadian works, first recording by these orchestral wind players from a suburb of Toronto. It is a contribution to Canada’s 150th birthday, and it is delightful.

American Record Guide, July/August 2017

 Producer Credits, Akashic Classics, Distributed by Universal
  • Journey Through Night, Canadian Music for String Quartet, Odin Quartet. Music by Samuel Bisson, Bruno Degazio, Alex Eddington, Daniel Mehdizadeh, Chris Meyer, Elizabeth Raum, and Ronald Royer (2021), Akashic Entertainment Recordings AE 21009
  • Panizza Plays Ravel, Alexander Panizza, piano. Piano music by Maurice Ravel, Gaspard de la nuit, Jeux d’eau, Miroirs, and La valse (2022). Akashic Entertainment Recordings AE 22005
  Producer Credits, Cambria Master Recordings, Distributed by Naxos

 Canadian Panorama, Winds of the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra, Ronald Royer, Conductor. Music by Howard Cable, Alex Eddington, John S. Gray, Jim McGrath, Chris Meyer, Alexander Rapoport and Ronald Royer (2017), Cambria CD-1227 (co-produced with Chris Meyer)

  • I Remember, University of Toronto Schools: Alumni and Friends. Music by Billy Bao, Johannes Brahms, Frederic Chopin, Paul Dukas, Antonin Dvorak, Alex Eddington, Felix Mendelssohn, Alexander Rapoport, Ronald Royer, Alexander Scriabin, Sarah Shugarman and Henri Vieuxtemps (2017), Cambria CD-1247
  • Romancing Chopin, Toronto Sinfonietta, Matthew Jaskiewicz, Conductor, Valerie Tryon, Piano, Nora Shulman, Flute, Kaye Royer, Clarinet, Coenraad Bloemendal, Cello. Featuring new arrangements and Chopin-inspired compositions by Alexander Rapoport and Ronald Royer (2015), Cambria CD-1225 (originally released in 2000 by Polish Canadian Society of Music) (co-produced with Matthew Jaskiewicz & Carolyn McGee)
  • Premieres, Conrad Chow, Violin, Sinfonia Toronto, Ronald Royer, Conductor, Bruce Broughton, Piano. Music by Bruce Broughton, Ronald Royer and Kevin Lau (2012), Cambria CD-1204 (co-produced with Dr. Jeannie Gayle Pool)
  • The Hollywood Flute of Louise DiTullio, Sinfonia Toronto, Ronald Royer, Conductor. Music by John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, John Barry, Danny Elfman, David Rose, Laurence Rosenthal and Ronald Royer (2010) Cambria CD-1194 (co-produced with Dr. Jeannie Gayle Pool)

 

Film Work
  • Music Supervisor for the Canadian Motion Picture, Gooby

Starring Robbie Coltrane, Eugene Levy, and David James Elliott (star of “JAG”). A Monterey Media Presentation & Coneybeare Stories Inc. production. Written, Produced and Directed by Wilson Coneybeare. Music by Ronald Royer and Kevin Lau (PG-2009)

       Current Projects as Producer
  • Night Music, Chamber Music by Ronald Royer, Odin Quartet, Canadian Sinfonietta Chamber Ensemble, Alexander Panizza, piano, Kaye Royer, clarinet, Máté Szűcs, viola, Aaron Schwebel, violin, Leana Rutt, cello (February 2023 Release).
  • Reflections: Canada and the World, Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra, Ronald Royer conductor. Featuring Samuel Bisson’s Epitaph, Concertpiece for String Quartet and Chamber Orchestra, and Daniel Mehdizadeh’s Koozeh (Two Thousand Silent Pots of Clay) for Wind Ensemble (recorded in June 2019). Chamber music by Bruno Degazio, ICOT, Elizabeth Raum, Ronald Royer, Brandon Walker and more (May 2023 Release).
  • Canadian Piano Music, Alexander Panizza (2023 Release TBA)
  • Canadian Music for String Quartet, Odin Quartet (2023 Release TBA)
  • Canadian Chamber Music, Players from the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra (2023 Release TBA).
  • Colours of Christmas, Jacelyn Holmes, vocalist and song writer, Martin Loomer, arranger, Tony Rabalao, song writer, Ronald Royer, song writer, arranger, and conductor, and Sarah Shugarman, song writer. New holidays songs and arrangements of famous holiday songs and carols, orchestrated for vocalist with a chamber orchestra, and vocalist with a big band. Three singles released November 2019, full album to be released November 2023.

 

Going over the score at a recording session.

PRODUCER

Mirage (string orchestra)

Other Versions: Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra and Quintet

Date: 2010

Duration:  9:45

Notes:

My intent in this composition is to explore the shifting and illusionary world of the dream state. Mirage begins with a slow meditative introduction representing the act of falling asleep. A solo viola cadenza follows, starting a sequence of musical episodes, each emphasizing different emotions and parts of a dream. As the string orchestra enters, the music takes on a melancholy air with occasional mysterious interludes. In the next section, the music speeds up and takes on a restless and more intense character employing a bluesy and jazz-infused theme. The music moves into a more flowing and serene section before leading into a faster and more agitated section representing the dream taking a more troubled direction. Leading to an unsettling climax, the music abruptly stops leaving silence. The original meditative music returns as the dreamer starts to awake entering that in-between world of wondering if the dream was real or not.

Analysis

          Mirage is based on three musical motifs which are continuously evolving and developing, giving the music an unstable yet unified character. The first two motifs are heard in the opening five bars. The third motif is introduced in the first allegro section. The form can be considered a fantasia or fantasy variation.

Motif 1 – ascending perfect 5th, minor 2nd, and perfect 5th (bars 1-3)

Motif 2 – descending minor 2nd, and major 3rd, then an ascending major 2nd (bars 4-5)

Motif 3 – ascending minor 3rd, major 2nd, and minor 3rd (bars 44-45)

Commissioning and First Performance

Mirage was originally composed for orchestra and was commissioned by the Orchestras Mississauga (John Barnum, music director) with the assistance of a Canada Council for the Arts composer residency grant. The re-orchestrated version of Mirage for string orchestra was commissioned by the Orchestras Mississauga and Soundstreams Canada (Lawrence Cherney, artistic director) and again was assisted by the Canada Council for Arts composer residency grant. The first performance of the string orchestra version was on February 19, 2007 at the Glenn Gould Studio, Toronto, featuring the Amici Strings and the University of Toronto Schools String Ensemble conducted by Joaquin Valdepenas.

 

Educator Biography

Ronald Royer conducting UTS String Ensemble
Ronald Royer conducting UTS String Ensemble

Educator Biography

Born in Los Angeles into a family of professional musicians, Ronald Royer grew up hearing live music and observing private music lessons. Besides wanting to be a cellist, he was interested in teaching, composing, and conducting. With a deep love and passion for music, all musical activities were meaningful for him. During university, Mr. Royer started teaching private cello lessons. While attending Immaculate Heart College on a full scholarship, he was also offered a position teaching cello at their community school.

He graduated from Immaculate Heart College in 1980 and started working as a free-lance cellist in Los Angeles. During the 1981-82 school year, he took his first composition class at California State University, Los Angeles. As his cello and teaching career became increasingly busy, composition studies were put on hold.

In 1983 and 84, he conducted and coached for the McMaster Summer Chamber Players (Hamilton, Ontario). In 1984, he started organizing, teaching and performing school concerts for the Glendale Unified School District (California), sponsored by the Glendale Chamber Orchestra. During the school year of 1985-1986, Mr. Royer did a Master of Music in Cello Performance at the University of Toronto. From 1986 to 1989, Mr. Royer and his wife, Kaye Royer, jointly taught classes (music theory and the history of jazz) for the McMaster University School for Continuing Education. In 1988, he conducted and coached for the Symphony Hamilton Summer Student Ensemble.

In 1990, Mr. Royer decided to change his focus, moving away from a free-lance lifestyle. During the school year of 1990-1991, Mr. Royer did his Bachelor of Education degree at the University of Toronto. Following graduation, he was offered a long-term occasional teacher position in music at Oakwood Collegiate Institute, Toronto Board of Education. Starting in the fall of 1991, he became a full-time music teacher at Oakwood C.I. teaching mostly string classes, but also a few wind classes. He conducted the Oakwood Senior Symphony, the Senior String Orchestra, and other ensembles. From 1994 to 1997, Mr. Royer taught music at Monarch Park Collegiate, Toronto Board of Education, this time teaching mostly vocal music. He conducted the Monarch Park Choir and was a member of the Monarch Park Chamber Players.

Having been inspired by working with a number of concert and film composers in the 1980’s and with the stability of a teaching position, Mr. Royer continued his studies in composition. Starting in 1993 with undergraduate classes in counterpoint and composition, he graduated with a Master of Music degree in Composition in 1997 from the University of Toronto. Also, in 1997 Mr. Royer was hired to be an instructor of music at the University of Toronto Schools (UTS), which were searching for a teacher who specialized in string instrument performance and composition. At UTS, he taught string classes and grade 11 and 12 music classes, which combined string and wind students. He conducted the UTS Senior and Junior Strings, and the UTS Orchestra. During his time as a teacher, he taught music theory, music history, composition and creativity as well as performance. His overall goal was to help students develop a deeper understanding and appreciation of music.

He was also involved with OISE/University of Toronto teacher training and did educational outreach. One special project was called the Hollywood Sound. In 2004, Mr. Royer was hired to be the composer-in-residence for the Mississauga Symphony, supported by a Canada Council for the Arts grant. As well, he was given a UTS Innovative Research and Development project grant, with support and participation of Leslie Stewart Rose, Arts Lecturer at OISE/UT, who served as project advisor. Study and teaching materials were developed with the goal of teaching music appreciation by demonstrating how music can affect an audience and enhance a motion picture. The Mississauga Symphony presented a student symphony concert for two years. The curriculum was presented to OISE/UT students for 20 years and continues to be taught at UTS.

Other educational projects include:

  1. Composer in the Classroom; to develop a program and materials to help High School students learn how to compose music (2001); The Chamber Music Society of Mississauga in association with the Lloyd-Carr Foundation.
  2. The Storyteller’s Bag Overture and music for The Star Lilly, for the children’s theatre production of The Storyteller’s Bag for Two Actors, Children’s Choir, Clarinet, String Quintet (quartet and bass) and Percussion (2003); Chamber Music Society of Mississauga, sponsored by the Ontario Trillium Foundation.
  3. A touring program for actor and 3 musicians geared for grades 5-8 to help teach students the elements of music and promote instrumental music programs (2009-2010); the Brantford Symphony

Mr. Royer has served as a composer-in-the-classroom for the Niagara Symphony, served as a clinician for Share the Music (sponsored by The Corporation of Massey Hall & Roy Thomson Hall), served as the composer-in-residence for the Southern Ontario Chamber Music Institute (summer 2004), and worked on educational outreach projects at UTS with Soundstreams, the Esprit Orchestra and the Canadian Music Centre. As the current music director of the Scarborough Philharmonic, he is involved with educational outreach in the Scarborough area.

Mr. Royer has composed and arranged music for young musicians, including one of his first compositions, Break, Break, Break (Text by Tennyson) for Two Choirs, Children’s Choir and Orchestra (1993). This work was performed by a massed choir and orchestra of over 600 Toronto District School Board (TDSB) students at Massey Hall. Mr. Royer went on to compose another piece for TDSB students at Massey Hall called The Tiger (Text by Blake), for Massed Choir and Wind Ensemble in 1996. 

Composing for young musicians has always been special and important to Mr. Royer. A few of these commissions include:

  1. Un Reve Fantastique for Wind Ensemble (1997), commissioned by the Toronto Youth Wind Orchestra, for performance and CD recording; grants from the Laidlaw Foundation and the Canada Council for the Arts
  2. Capriccio for string quartet or quintet, for the New Music for Young Musicians project, commissioned by the Canadian Music Centre, Ontario Region, grants from the Canada Council Millennium Arts Fund and Ontario, the Millennium 2000
  3. The Great Canadian Story, for String Orchestra (2012), commissioned by Sistema Toronto
  4. A Halloween Adventure for Symphonic Band, for the Making Music project (2014), which focused on creating new music, in collaboration with students, for student performance. 18 schools in the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board were involved.
  5. Land of Shining Waters for orchestra (2018), by the Kawartha Youth Orchestra (Peterborough) for their 10th anniversary concert and celebrations.

Mr. Royer retired from UTS in 2018, but continues to compose, conduct, play cello, teach private lessons (cello, theory and composition), and engage in other musical activities. He continues to be an advocate for music education.

 

Preparing for the UTS Remembrance Day performance (2017) 

Ronald Royer conducting UTS String Ensemble

UTS  Remembrance Day performance (2017)

UTS Remembrance Day Concert (2017)

TEACHING

Di Tullio, Joseph

A native of Los Angeles, from a family of musicians, Justin studied cello with Ilya Bronson, Lauri Kennedy and Bronislaw Borisoff, all first cellists of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He also studied for two summers with the famous cellist, Emanuel Feuermann. He joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra when only 19; one of the youngest members ever selected. He remained with the orchestra until joining the Navy, where he served from 1942-45. While in service he was picked to perform with string quartet on the cruiser Augusta, accompanying President Truman to Potsdam and on other secret missions along with Sir Winston Churchill. Returning from the Navy, Justin was under contract to the Society of Motion Picture Producers orchestra until 1949. In 1951 he joined the NBC staff orchestra, and later free-lanced extensively in all types of motion-picture and television recording sessions. On YouTube and Spotify, he is listed on a number of recordings, such as The Ten Commandments (Elmer Bernstein, 1956 soundtrack recording), Mission Impossible (Lalo Schifrin, original TV soundtrack), and records by Frank Sinatra, The Monkeys, The Beach Boys, Nat King Cole, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald. He died in 1974 at the age of 56.

Cellist Edgar Lustgarten writes, “I honestly believe that there was no other cellist that we knew, both professionally and as a friend, that was held as dearly. He had rare qualities- sincerity, warmth and encouragement for all his colleagues. He always had the highest of standards for himself and, therefore for others. Along with this he had a great sense of humor. Sometimes at work, under the most trying circumstances, he would come up with an hilarious comment that would immediately break all the tension. We always enjoyed his “salty” remarks that would take the arrogance out of those around him. We feel a great debt of gratitude for having had someone like Justin, who brought to our profession something very special.”

https://rateyourmusic.com/artist/justin-ditullio/credits/